Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Great Shelford

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Great Shelford, you will need to chose a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Clydesdale , RBS or Nationwide make sure you choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Great Shelford conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Great Shelford leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years unexpired on my flat in Great Shelford. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Great Shelford.

I have just appointed agents to market my garden flat in Great Shelford.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Great Shelford. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Great Shelford ?

The majority of houses in Great Shelford are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Great Shelford in which case you should be shopping around for a Great Shelford conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Great Shelford from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Great Shelford can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
  • Many landlords or managing agents in Great Shelford levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Great Shelford.
  • A minority of Great Shelford leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Great Shelford conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • What makes a Great Shelford lease problematic?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Great Shelford. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

    You could have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. National Westminster Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

    I inherited a 2 bed flat in Great Shelford, conveyancing was carried out in 1999. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Great Shelford with a long lease are worth £245,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2092

    With just 72 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Great Shelford